“The one approach to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, transfer with it, and be part of the dance.” ~Alan Watts
I used to assume that stability was the important thing to happiness. Keep in a single place, construct a profession, nurture long-term relationships—these had been the pillars of a profitable life, or so I believed.
My life was a rigorously constructed fortress of routine and familiarity. Get up at 6 a.m., commute to the identical workplace I’d labored at for a decade, come dwelling to the identical house I’d lived in since faculty, rinse and repeat. It was protected. It was predictable. It was slowly suffocating me.
As I approached my fortieth birthday, I discovered myself more and more stressed. The partitions of my comfy life felt extra like a jail than a sanctuary. I’d scroll by means of social media, seeing associates and acquaintances embarking on new adventures, altering careers, and shifting to new cities, and I’d really feel a pang of envy combined with worry.
“I want I might do this,” I’d assume, rapidly adopted by, “However what if all of it goes fallacious?”
It was throughout one among these late-night scrolling classes that I got here throughout a quote from Alan Watts that might change all the things: “The one approach to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, transfer with it, and be part of the dance.”
I stared at these phrases, feeling as in the event that they had been talking on to my soul. What if, as a substitute of fearing change, I embraced it?
The subsequent morning, I awoke with a way of objective I hadn’t felt in years. I made a decision to make a change—not a small one, however a seismic shift that might problem all the things I assumed I knew about myself and my life. I used to be going to give up my job, promote most of my possessions, and journey the world for a 12 months.
The second I made this resolution, I felt a mixture of exhilaration and sheer terror. What about my profession? My house? My relationships? The questions swirled in my thoughts, threatening to overwhelm me. However beneath the worry, there was a spark of pleasure that I couldn’t ignore.
I gave myself six months to organize. These months had been a whirlwind of planning, saving, and going through the reactions of family and friends. Some had been supportive; others thought I used to be having a midlife disaster.
My mother and father had been significantly apprehensive. “However what about your future?” they requested, echoing the identical considerations they’d had after I switched majors in faculty.
Because the departure date drew nearer, my nervousness grew. There have been moments after I significantly thought-about calling the entire thing off. What if I used to be making a horrible mistake? What if I couldn’t deal with the uncertainty?
It was throughout one among these moments of doubt that I noticed one thing vital: The worry I used to be feeling wasn’t nearly this journey. It was the identical worry that had saved me trapped in a life that not fulfilled me. If I gave in to it now, I’d by no means break away.
So, I pushed ahead. I boarded that airplane with a backpack, a one-way ticket, and a coronary heart filled with each terror and hope. The primary few weeks had been difficult. I felt misplaced, not simply geographically however existentially. Who was I with out my job title, my routine, my acquainted environment?
However slowly, one thing magical started to occur. As I navigated new cities, tried new meals, and met individuals from all walks of life, I felt layers of my outdated self peeling away. I found a resilience I by no means knew I had. Issues that might have despatched me right into a tailspin again dwelling turned adventures and challenges to unravel. I discovered to belief my instincts, to seek out pleasure within the surprising, and to embrace the unknown.
One significantly transformative second got here three months into my journey. I used to be climbing within the mountains of Peru, fighting altitude illness and questioning my resolution to aim this trek.
As I sat on a rock, catching my breath and preventing again tears, an aged native girl handed by. She smiled at me and mentioned one thing in Quechua that I didn’t perceive. However her smile and the mild pat she gave my shoulder spoke volumes.
In that second, I noticed that kindness and human connection transcend language and tradition. I additionally realized that I used to be stronger than I ever gave myself credit score for.
Because the months handed, I discovered myself altering in methods I by no means anticipated. I turned extra open, extra curious, extra prepared to attempt new issues. I discovered to stay with much less and recognize extra. The fixed motion and alter turned not simply tolerable however exhilarating. I used to be, as Alan Watts had mentioned, becoming a member of the dance of change.
But it surely wasn’t all clean crusing. There have been days of loneliness, moments of doubt, and instances after I missed the consolation of my outdated life. I discovered that embracing change doesn’t imply you by no means really feel worry or uncertainty. It means you’re feeling these issues and transfer ahead anyway.
As my 12 months of journey neared its finish, I confronted a brand new problem: what subsequent? The considered returning to my outdated life felt not possible. I used to be not the one who had left a 12 months in the past. However the concept of continuous to journey indefinitely didn’t really feel proper both. I noticed I used to be craving a brand new type of stability—one constructed on the inspiration of flexibility and development I’d cultivated throughout my travels.
I made a decision to maneuver to a brand new metropolis, one I’d fallen in love with throughout my travels. I discovered a job that allowed me to make use of my outdated abilities in new methods, with the flexibleness to proceed exploring the world. I made new associates who shared my love of journey and private development. I created a life that embraced change relatively than feared it.
Wanting again on this journey, I’m amazed at how far I’ve come. The one who was as soon as paralyzed by the thought of change now seeks it out as a supply of development and pleasure. Listed here are among the most vital classes I’ve discovered.
1. Worry is just not a cease signal.
Worry is a pure a part of change, however it doesn’t have to regulate you. Acknowledge it, perceive it, however don’t let it make your choices for you.
2. Discomfort is the place development occur.
The moments that challenged me essentially the most had been additionally those that taught me essentially the most about myself and the world.
3. Flexibility is energy.
Having the ability to adapt to new conditions is much extra precious than attempting to regulate all the things round you as a result of usually, the one factor you’ll be able to management is how properly you adapt.
4. Much less is commonly extra.
Residing out of a backpack for a 12 months taught me how little I really have to be blissful.
5. Change is fixed.
As an alternative of resisting change, studying to stream with it brings a way of peace and pleasure to life.
6. It’s by no means too late.
At forty, I assumed I used to be too outdated to transform my life. I used to be fallacious. It’s by no means too late to begin a brand new chapter.
If you end up feeling caught, craving for one thing extra however afraid to make a change, I encourage you to take that first step.
It doesn’t should be as dramatic as promoting all the things and touring the world (although I extremely advocate it if you happen to can!). Begin small. Take a distinct path to work. Strive a brand new pastime. Have a dialog with somebody you wouldn’t usually speak to. Every small change builds your resilience and opens you as much as new prospects.
Embracing change doesn’t imply your life will at all times be simple or that you just’ll by no means face challenges. But it surely does imply that you just’ll be residing totally, rising always, and experiencing the wealthy tapestry of what life has to supply.
Your life is just not a set path however a journey of fixed evolution. Embrace the modifications, be taught from the challenges, and have a good time the expansion. The world is huge, life is brief, and the best adventures usually start with a single step into the unknown. So take that step. Be part of the dance of change. You could be amazed at the place it leads you.
About Anna
Anna is a author, speaker, and group chief who helps girls going by means of perimenopause. She desires to alter how individuals take into consideration this vital time in life. She believes in utilizing data, sharing experiences, and including humor to make powerful instances simpler. Anna invitations girls to see perimenopause as a pure and empowering a part of life. Be part of her to snigger, be taught, and develop collectively as she works in direction of a world the place perimenopause is talked about overtly and positively.
